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Development of the Terminators

How the original Terminators were built is unknown, at least in one timeline (Terminator 2: Judgment Day), Cyberdyne Systems was able to reverse-engineer and develop robots from the scavenged hand and CPU of the destroyed T-800 in 1984.[3] Cyberdyne System had created the Series 70 Terminator to impress investors and people with military interests to finance them to improve robot technology.

In Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles timeline, Cameron Phillips establishes that modern Terminators are made of coltan for heat resistance, while previous models were made of titanium.
Normally, the living tissue outer sheath can age over years.<[4]More advanced flesh used on T-888s appears to not suffer the effects of age or deprivation during hibernation, such as Myron Stark, who is able to maintain his organic covering while sealed within a wall for eighty years[5] Terminator flesh lacerations can be repaired.[6][7]

Although clearly not the normal procedure, a bare T-888 endoskeleton was able to grow itself a new flesh covering using 2007 technology (with the assistance of a geneticist and its own knowledge of future formula) by submerging itself in a blood-like bath. This improvised process resulted in a deformed covering that had the appearance of a burn victim and lacked its own biological eyes, requiring it to steal those of the geneticist and subsequently undergo cosmetic surgery to produce a more normal appearance.[8]

It has been shown that Terminators' flesh coverings are somehow grown identically, producing many multiple copies of exactly the same physical appearance, indicating the use of specific physical templates for different variations of a model. The most well known is that worn by multiple Model 101 units, as well as a T-888 model known as "Vick Chamberlain" having a memory of facing a room (presumably in the factory where it was created) of several dozen units sharing an identical template to itself, naked and moving in unison. Some Terminators' outer coverings are custom-designed to copy the appearances of humans whom they are intended to kill and replace, such as Carl Greenway[9], James Ellison[10], and Allison Young[11]

I-950 Series

Unlike the T series Terminators, the I series Infiltrators are bred, and not factory built machines. Skynet decided that the best way for one of its Terminators to act human was to start out with a human and add technological enhancements where necessary. The I-950 starts out as a genetically engineered baby with a neural net processor attached to its brain, providing an up-link to Skynet. To condition it physically, it is coaxed with holographic toys to crawl until it is exhausted. After four years, it is given an injection that rapidly ages it to maturity to finish its training. In an effort to blend in better with humans, the I-950 is allowed to feel emotions, but the range is limited by one of its cybernetic implants. Because it is far more human than machine, dogs are not alerted to its presence, and the infiltrator can go undetected for extremely long periods of time inside a resistance base.

The I-950 carry T-101's CPU in case they are needed, as well as power cells. Once the "living" portion of the I-950 is dead, the CPU then takes control of the body, but can only do so for a short time. They can reproduce with other 950s but not humans. If the female I-950 decides that the pregnancy would stop them from carrying out their mission, they could fertilize their eggs in vitro and would be implanted in human surrogate wombs. They are also able to clone themselves.

Non-Humanoid Terminators

Skynet has employed robots not designed to appear as humans even while having access to those who are. Simple Humanoid Hunter-Killers share the endoskeletons and combat characteristics with Infiltrators, but not the living tissue sheath. Instead, they serve as general infantry.

Infiltrators

The Infiltrator is a type of the Humanoid Hunter Killer that is built to look exactly like humans and used to infiltrate, seek out and kill human beings. The Infiltrator progresses from rubber skin, human flesh over its endoskeleton, to mimetic polyalloy able to mimic any person or object.

Nomenclature

The end credits of all three films list Arnold Schwarzenegger's character as simply the "Terminator". Later films credit the newer Terminators by their series numbers, such as "T-1000", "T-X", or "T-800".

Those being chased by a Terminator, will often simply call it the "Terminator" (as Reese does throughout the first film). If more than one type of Terminator is involved more specific names may be used; ranging from an official designation to a variety of nicknames. The most common seems to be to add "T-" to the beginning of the series number.

↑ 25.025.125.225.325.425.525.625.725.8Shown on screen in the special features from the Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines DVD, which identifies the T-850 as an "Series 850 Model 101", and the older Terminator as an "Series 800 Model 101". (The T3 DVD Extras swap the order of Series & Model for all references, not just the new ones.)